World Literature Essays are FUN!

1. World Literature Essays are FUN! Four Areas for Focus: The Introductory Paragraph: thesis/argument/aims How to Compare: the structure of the essay The Well Developed Paragraph: referring to the text The Conclusion

2. Literary Focus? But of course… • Methods of characterization • 5 methods! • Narration, perspective, point of view • Foreshadow, flashback, linear, non-linear • Conflict and resolution • Symbols • Motifs • Mood • Tone • Style • Setting

3. What we know about argumentation… What are the 3 components of any argument? • Claim • Evidence • Warrant

4. The Introduction • T.A.G your introduction! • (TITLES + AUTHORS + GENRE) • Does not have to be long winded and flashy • Should clearly show the link between the texts • Explain the line of argument or exploration • Have a clear CLAIM!

5. Ask yourself these questions as you write your WL Essay! Looking at Essay Structure Look at your essay:  Is it block or parallel? Regardless of approach:  Have you consistently made connections?  Are your ideas fully intertwined, showing relationship?  D0 you have balance of support?

6. Essay Examples: Intros and Claims Love is more often than not a reciprocal emotional commitment. In the two excerpts from Madame Bovary and House of Spirits, the authors Flaubert and Allende strategically describe the parting of two lovers by using depressing and perverted diction, reminiscent descriptions on the part of the female characters, and the classical epiphany of shock to convey the dominance of males in emotional relationships, suggesting that male lovers unconsciously hold a power over their female counterparts. … Both Emma and Blanca, by themselves, are passive, helpless female characters who serve to emphasize females’ futility in attaining their idealistic versions of fulfilling lives. By emphasizing Emma’s and Blanca’s demeanors and referring constantly to their unhappy lives, Flaubert and Allende highlight the inability of the female in the characters’ particular settings to break past traditional barriers in order to pursue the elusive sliver of the perfect life, thus resulting in the switch from realism to idealism.

7. Essay Examples: Intros and Claims … In Gustave Flaubert’s Madame Bovary and Isabel Allende’sThe House of the Spirits, adults send the children Charles and Alba, respectively, to receive schooling at the finest institutions. Despite their compliance, however, the children become either lost or unappreciative of what they are learning. These two books demonstrate how the decision for a child’s education may be presented to emphasize the miscommunication between parents’ expectations and the child’s own interest; this is clear through mentioning the intentions of the parents and the children’s loss of direction. In Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert and This Earth of Mankind by PramoedyaAnantaToer, both authors present characters that move up the social class through education. Charles in Madame Bovary grows up in the middle class and is able to move up the social status through his knowledge of medicine, while Minke who is a Native, the lowest status in Javanese society, is able to receive European culture that influences how he views societal issues such as discrimination of lower classes. Charles from Madame Bovary and Minke from This Earth of Mankind are able to acquire knowledge that aids them in moving up the social ladder through the influence of their parents and the hardships they face while reaching their goal of a high knowledge.

8. Review Structure & Elements of the Exemplar (Script J1) • Note clear and concise “workhorse” introduction • Note references to cultural setting (here, this is not a dominant aspect of the topic, BUT writer still refers to it!) • Note smooth transitions (words, phrases, sents.) • Note clear connections, and smooth movement between the examples of the two texts • Note short and clear conclusion… that could do a better job of being more reflective and a tad less repetitive

9. Paragraph Development • One idea = one paragraph • Topic sentence  everything in the paragraph should be directly related to it! • For body paragraphs, use the last sentence to subtly transition to the next idea • 9 times out of 10 you do not want to end a paragraph with a quote See full explanation and examples on the blog!

10. Quotation Blending • The aim of using evidence from the text is that the quotation enhances your idea and helps prove you are right • You have to incorporate your quotations • After a quotation you need to explain/analyze it, quotes cannot speak for themselves • Steer clear of phrases like, “this quote shows…” or “this quote tell us…” • Use only the parts of the quotation that are relevant to your ideas • Doing this well is an art form that takes LOTS of practice!

11. Quoting & In-text Citation • Be exact in your MLA style • When you directly quote OR summarize from a secondary source, you need to include the in-text citation • Because you are writing about TWO novels, you need to include the author’s name every time you use a quotation • Purdue Owl Link for this: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/02/

12. In-Text Citation Examples: As Emma laments the fate of females, she sighs, “but a woman is always hampered,” suggesting the stifling reality of the Napoleonic Code (Flaubert 74). Minke declares his youth with a reference to fresh, innocent natural elements reminding readers, “[he] was just the age of a corn plant” (Toer 2). The devil lies in the details! Follow the recipe exactly!

13. When writing about literature… • T.A.G. your introduction, within first few sentences!  Title + Author + Genre (novel) • Book titles are underlined OR italicized EVERY time you write them! • Write in the present tense! • Support your ideas with words from the novel (you should have 2-4 quotes in every body paragraph!) • DO NOT refer to yourself (i.e. I, me, my, mine) • DO NOT address the audience (i.e. you, we, us, our) • DO NOT use contractions

14. Draft DUE Thursday/Friday, May 5/6Directions: A Major Assessment: • This should be completed and polished • 1000 – 1500 well edited words! • Clear introduction & claim, coherent paragraphs, smooth transitions, lots of evidence, reflective conclusion, directions followed • Include title page & works cited page • Follow MLA format guidelines –Purdue Owl: • http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/ • Print Essay AND staple in this order: rubric, title page, essay, works cited page (can come at end of essay if it means you save a page, at this point)

15. Sneak Peak at MLA Format • Header on right hand top corner and includes • page number, name, school, (IB candidate #, next year) • Double Space entire paper • Paragrpahs indented • 12 point font • One inch margins • Titles of your texts always underlined • Proper citations • Works cited page: labeled as such, double spaced, entries alphabetically listed and formatted properly